That’s Why voters Hire Democrats
Every Democrat elected to any office right now is standing in front of George Bush’s shit fan. Obama, Markell, Coon, on down the line. In one way or anther, they were all hired to clean the shit mess created by George Bush that is trickled down on every state, county, and school district in the country.
They’ll do it, and they’ll do it while nit wits and defectives like Jensen and Pico bitch about it like spoiled 16 year old girls.
New Castle County Executive Chris Coons took steps Thursday to slash spending and warned residents to expect a property tax increase next year as the government struggles against a bleak financial picture made worse by a sharp decline in revenue.
The county has lost $14.2 million since the July 1 start of the fiscal year, mostly from a drop in real estate transfer tax revenue.
The tax — collected when property is bought and sold — was once the second-largest source of income for the county. But as housing sales have plunged, so has the money reaped from the tax.
Coons trimmed $5 million on Thursday by freezing hiring, forbidding nonessential overtime and reducing other expenses, moves he described as just the beginning. He said he plans to announce more cuts in January to help close a $30 million budget gap.
Coons did not reveal how much of a property tax increase is in the works.
“My budget next year will include recommendations to increase revenues significantly,” he wrote. “If we are unable to increase revenues to compensate for some of our lost revenues and pay for the cost of our government, we will have no choice but to take more drastic actions to bring our expenses in line with our revenues.”
The next few years are going to be dismal, that’s for sure. I’m pretty bummed, they are letting people go at work now.
Coons is cleaning up Tom Gordon’s mess, not George Bush’s. Gordon is a fellow Democrat.
Ha!
I’m sure you don’t really think that Obs. In order to think that you’d have to think that Gordon played a larger part in creating this shitty economy than George Bush did.
A little off subject, but since we have someone interested in running, I thought I’d share this email I got from the Delaware Democratic Party:
Candidate Interest Meeting
for 6th Representative District Special Election
The 6th Representative District will be holding an interest meeting for prospective candidates in the upcoming special election (date and time to be determined) to replace Rep. Diana McWilliams.
DATE: Monday, November 17th
TIME: 6:30p.m.
LOCATION: Edgemoor Community Center, 500 Duncan Rd. #A, Wilmington
All registered Democrats are welcome to attend. However, only members of the 6th District Democratic Committee will be eligible to vote for the candidate they wish to have on the ballot. For more information, please contact Bob McWilliams at 302.765.2053.
MJ-That’s not off subject at all!
“I’m sure you don’t really think that Obs. In order to think that you’d have to think that Gordon played a larger part in creating this shitty economy than George Bush did.”
Did George Bush sign a labor deal that includes automatic 5% over 3% raises for all county employees for the first 10 years of employment?
Did George Bush create an environment in NCCo where retired state employees could significantly pad their pensions by spending a few years at the County?
Please.
Jason won’t link to the actual WNJ article so that his stupid won’t be exposed by the hundred comments condemning Coons’ mismanagement and tax and spend crappy governing to come.
Dumbass Coonsies unite!
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081114/NEWS02/811140337&s=d&page=6#pluckcomments
The best comment by far:
Now may be the ideal time to consider merging Wilmington into NCC. Two sets of overhead make no sense. Wilmington has a surplus, plus it is sitting on millions of $ of untaxed revenue with its poor management of its Earned Income Tax program. Earnings of those working part-time in Wilmington (out of town bankers, lawyers, other professionals are not being taxed, although the law says their earnings are taxable income).
Think this is a radical idea? Ask the residents of Charlotte, NC what happened when they merged Charlotte and Mecklenburg County together. Property taxes went down, police service went up, schools improved and there was a boom in downtown Charlotte when they eliminated the double real estate taxation/transfer taxes.
The combined Charlotte/Mecklenburg County government ought to be a role model for what can happen when fundamental change occurs.
It’s time for fundamental change.
Nancy,
Thanks for the link.
Dave,
Remind me again what party Gordon belonged to just before he decided to run for elected office?
Good luck with that argument Nancy. The General Assembly would have to act, and we know that isn’t happening-they will keep putting more on the counties to lessen their burden. Wait till the report from the next DEFAC meeting.
PS- Nancy thought Tom Gordon had all the answers–that’s all anyone needs to know.
You’re really going with that?
A shotgun marriage between Wilmington & NCC has been talked about for years. I am opposed to the county swallowing the city, however, if the county is incorporated into the city I’d go along without too much resistance.
I can’t comment of Charlotte but check out “Miami Dade County” for an eyeful.
I forgot to add,
“They’ll do it, and they’ll do it while nit wits and defectives like Jensen and Pico bitch about it like spoiled 16 year old girls. And while the nit wits bitch, partisans like Burris (who happen to know the truth but see some short term economic advantage in sticking with the GOP) will cheer them on in their empty headed bitching.”
Well, hey, #12 beats legitimately defending your ridiculous initial argument.
Your argument was so strong that it went from “It’s all Bush’s fault” to “Tom Gordon used to be a Republican.”
Maybe some soul searching is in order.
So, Ruth Ann Minner is totally blameless for Delaware’s economy?
I can assume that will be the daily whine, blame it on Bush?
Obama, Markell and Coons ran on a platform. They should act on their beliefs and priorities not rest on blaming someone else.
feh.
It is all Bush’s fault dummy. (See the post). The Gordon thing was your red herring not mine.
Get a grip Dave. I know you have some thinking to do since all your beliefs have been shown to be pure bullshit.
Coons should have inherited a decent rainy day fund to draw on when times became bad. Gordon left a mess. The current economy and the drop in the transfer tax is only exacerbating the situation. No one would say that Gordon is responsible for today’s economic woes.
But look down south, in Sussex, where the pros running the government – the county administrator and finance team – have done a solid job of setting money aside when times were good. Last year they made some cuts in grants and drew on their reserves to fill the gap. They still have a good reserve fund to draw on next year, when it will be necessary. ‘Cause I don’t think the GOP-controlled council will want to vote for a tax increase.
I know the situations are different – NCCo has a parks system, Sussex doesn’t, for example – but planning for the future is critical. We’re all finding that out now.
The differences go well beyond SuxCo’s lack of a park system. They also don’t have their own police force, though they should so that we could shrink the state police force. They also have an enviable cash cow in the billions of dollars’ worth of second-home real estate value.
In short, the situations are nothing alike. Sussex could mismanage itself for years without the problems showing up in tax bills.
In fairness to obs, however, it should be noted that Gordon ran up an enormous cash reserve — an illegal one, as the Chancery Court ruled — only to piss an enormous amount of it away in the year before he left office. So planning for the future did occur, but it was for Gordon’s future, not the county’s.
Shorter Jason: I give up.
I am the author of the text that Nancy Willing refers to in #6 above, which was cut and paste from my response to the Coons administration article in TNJ.
I spent 20 years as a CPA, a portion of which was as a partner in a nationwide firm. This experience includes preparing CAFR’s for many City and County governments in the Mid-Atlantic, as well as advising them on tax policies, including LITHC, HTC and NMTC (low income, historic and new market tax credits).
I’ve seen this work, first hand.
The question is does DE have innovative thinkers for elected officials, and/or constituents who are passionate enough to learn and push their politicians towards fundamental change?
cuff,
This is Delaware you are talking about.
Dave,
Funny stuff fromt he guy who never even pretended to address the actual post.
I addressed the post just fine. It was when my points became too much for your weak “blame Bush for all our problems” meme that you gave up.
Dude,
You jumped in after Gordon was brought up and skipped over the whole point of the post, which is: George Bush has caused big problems for State, County and local governments.
If you care to comment on that feel free. Otherwise – good day sir.
Also – I wish I never taught you the “Shorter Burris: I quit” trick”
Your over use of it is bringing it into disrepute.
Actually, the point of the post is to absolve Democrats in Delaware of their actions. Sure, states are suffering from the economy, but only one state can have the worst-performing economy in the nation. And that’s us. The state run nearly entirely by Democrats.
Any attempt to blame all our problems on Bush is extremely weak. Not to mention that blaming Bush entirely for the state of the economy is intellectually dishonest at best.
“The differences go well beyond SuxCo’s lack of a park system. ”
True. But, unless you’re living in a district where they have sewage service, such as one of the many new developments, or areas where mobile/manufactured homes are concentrated (consult Dana, for his Sussex Co. trailer park expertise), the county provides very little in the way of services.
“They also don’t have their own police force, though they should so that we could shrink the state police force. ”
Bullshit. Sussex Co. pays the DSP dearly for “extra ” troopers every year, yet their response times in the unincorporated areas is still horrendous. Granted, the county could do it more efficiently, but I can never envision DSP reducing its staff. Sussex has also been giving hundreds of thousands to local police departments to offset their cost of responding to areas outside their jurisdictions, which is common practice.
“They also have an enviable cash cow in the billions of dollars’ worth of second-home real estate value.”
Looked at the numbers lately? That cow’s teats are drying up and becoming leathery.
Dave,
At least we agree that Bush is the only variable in our situation.
You seem to suggest that Delaware would have faired better under Copeland or Lee’s version of Bush’s economic royalism. Interesting conjecture in light of the fact that Republican economic theories have been roundly rebuked by events.
l.
“You seem to suggest that Delaware would have faired better under Copeland or Lee’s version of Bush’s economic royalism.”
I’m suggesting that people randomly selected from the phone book would have done a better job than the Minner-Adams administration.
Are you suggesting that economic development methods like atrophy and “wishing upon a star” were Bush’s fault?
Are you suggesting that the fact that there’s no good reason beyond a cash payout for any company to relocate to Delaware is Bush’s fault?
Are you suggesting that the fact that we had the worst-performing economy in the nation last year is Bush’s fault?
Are you suggesting that doubling state spending in 8 years and doubling the state debt in 8 years was Bush’s fault?
Are you suggesting that sweetheart union deals and pension boosts in NCCo were Bush’s fault?
Are you suggesting that the IR bridge was Bush’s fault?
“Interesting conjecture in light of the fact that Republican economic theories have been roundly rebuked by events. ”
The only thing that’s been rebuked by events is the idea of giving mortgages to people that can’t afford them and the idea that there’s any industry in the world that doesn’t need some sort of oversight.
Are you suggesting that the fact that we had the worst-performing economy in the nation last year is Bush’s fault?
Link? I know you have one, but I’m curious to see it.
Now then…You know full well that I have thrown RAM under the bus many times when it comes to her role in playing along with the Pete DuPont/Mike Castle/Tom Carper version of “throw big bucks at fortune 500 companies and call it economic development”, so there is some more common ground.
The bottom line however, is that Democrats were in charge here under Clinton and Bush. You do you math and figure out who was better for state’s economy.
As for this…
The only thing that’s been rebuked by events is the idea of giving mortgages to people that can’t afford them and the idea that there’s any industry in the world that doesn’t need some sort of oversight.
I’ll allow it since you are no doubt still in shock over the fact that tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations only help the wealthy and corporations – and then only in the very short term. Just as you are no doubt in shock over the fact that running up huge budget deficits gives the illusion of growth for a short while, but is ultimately a bad economic strategy.
Yes. I forgot. I’ve been quite the proponent for deficit spending and corporate welfare. Thanks for reminding me.
“Link? I know you have one, but I’m curious to see it.”
Yes, I do. While 47 other state economies grew last year, ours shrunk. And of the three that shrunk, ours shrunk the most.
Where’s the link?
I’ve been quite the proponent for deficit spending .
Actions speak louder than words. You voted for Bush twice. That is two big votes for stupidity and deficit spending.
Wow… I sort of agree with Miscreant on the Sussex DSP issue. My head hurts!
Al: There was a Sussex sheriff a few years ago who claimed he had police authority. Not so, the state said, and clamped down. So much for a county police force. My understanding is that it would take an act of the legislature to give Sussex that authority. Sussex just can’t up and start one.
Miscreant: I do disagree with you that Sussex doesn’t provide much in the way of services except sewers. There’s a county-run airport, an industrial park (neither of which NCCo has), many county-run libraries, a 911 dispatch/emergency ops center, and it has contributed funding to independent libraries and senior centers for many years. Other than a park system, rec leagues, “activity centers” and senior centers, what else does NCCo provide its residents, exactly?
[ The Sussex paramedic service alone has saved tons of lifes. Personally, I think it’s still just a half-step on the way to a much-needed professional fire and medic force, but challenging the political power of the volunteer fire companies is suicidal. ]
But unless the Powers That Be get some balls and do a full-scale reorganization of county-level government, there’s still going to be a crappy patchwork system across Delaware. Why should NCCo have an elected Executive, Kent have something with the stupid moniker of “Levy Court,” and Sussex have a hybrid system that writes checks to the state for police services, when we could all have the same, simple structure?
“Actions speak louder than words. You voted for Bush twice. That is two big votes for stupidity and deficit spending.”
So, in essence, all of Delaware’s problems are actually MY fault. Except for that vote for McCain in the 2000 primary. But still. No reason for that to get in the way of a weak argument.
Find your own link.
HA!
Talk about “I got nothing!”
Nope. Nothing.
Obs don’t forget, Public Safety is half of NCCo’s budget. Sewers are a big cash hog too….